The experience of the arts and the nature of arts education need to be expanded.   Beyond viewing the performance itself, an engagement with the arts should include an understanding of the alluvial confluence of experiences that brought forth the creative act.  

This is the vision of the founders of a newly opened cultural arts center located on the Virginia bank of the Potomac River adjacent to Washington, DC.   The new facility - christened "The Artisphere" - is a place for people and the arts to collide.  "Think Barn Stormers meet cyber-collaboration while painting and performing," is how one of the founders described the programming of the new facility.   Similar to a hub in a digital communication network, the Artisphere is a hub in a network of creative centers throughout the urban region and around the globe.  Full of intimate, co-located spaces with multiple programs occurring simultaneously, the Artisphere is a new model for arts education and the community cultural center.